When the Fiery Sun Palm reached perfection, Gu Qingfeng's body underwent a dramatic transformation, as if he had been practicing this martial art for centuries. His qi and blood surged like a torrential river, and a searing heat flowed through his meridians.
At that moment, Gu Qingfeng became a master of the Blood Refining realm.
Name: Gu Qingfeng
Age: 35/100
Realm: Blood Refining Perfection
Martial Arts: Gu Family Fist (Indestructible, Level 1), Iron Body Skill (As Strong as Iron, Level 1), Big Stone Smashing Hand (Minor Success), Iron Leg Skill (Minor Success), Iron Refining Finger (Minor Success), Fiery Sun Palm (Level 9 Perfection, Blazing Sun Strength Level 4)
Improvement Points: 1
Gu Qingfeng glanced at his attribute panel. As expected, the Fiery Sun Palm breakthrough had pushed his realm from mid-Blood Refining to the perfected stage.
No—strictly speaking, he was half a step into Bone Refining.
Half-step Bone Refining wasn't its own realm, so it only appeared as Blood Refining Perfection on the panel. However, Gu Qingfeng knew that the moment his Fiery Sun Palm reached perfection, his cultivation had surpassed the normal limits of Blood Refining and entered this elusive half-step Bone Refining stage, as referenced in the Fiery Sun Palm technique.
At the fifth level of the Fiery Sun Palm, the technique gained a special feature called "Blazing Sun Strength." Each subsequent level of mastery further increased this power.
Now, at the ninth level, the Blazing Sun Strength had reached its fourth stage. This fiery force turned into a blazing torrent inside Gu Qingfeng, slowly flowing through his meridians and seeping into his bones, tempering them bit by bit.
Above Blood Refining is Bone Refining!
Bone Refining, as the name implies, was the process of tempering one's bones. Now, the Blazing Sun Strength was gradually refining Gu Qingfeng's bones. He had a strong feeling that even if he stopped cultivating, this process would naturally allow him to break through the Blood Refining stage and step into the Bone Refining realm.
This realization left Gu Qingfeng in awe. "I underestimated the power of the Fiery Sun Palm!"
He had always thought of it as a strong mid-tier martial art, but now it seemed that at perfection, it might rival the top-tier techniques. After all, this passive ability to aid in breaking through to Bone Refining was unheard of in other mid-tier martial arts.
Even Yun Pavilion didn't realize this, he thought. Otherwise, they would have never auctioned off the Fiery Sun Palm, and certainly not for such a low price.
Breaking through to Bone Refining was no small feat. In a place like Bai Shidao, Blood Refining Perfection was seen as the peak, and Bone Refining masters were non-existent. This alone demonstrated how rare and powerful Bone Refining warriors were.
However, the Fiery Sun Palm was notoriously difficult to master. It had taken Gu Qingfeng three years just to achieve the fourth level, and each subsequent level became exponentially more challenging. Perfecting it would have been impossible without decades of dedication.
Yet now, thanks to the upgrade points, Gu Qingfeng had a shortcut.
Gu Qingfeng also realized another key point during this breakthrough.
"Breaking the limit of low-grade martial arts requires at least five points. For each subsequent break, the cost increases substantially. However, for mid-tier martial arts like the Fiery Sun Palm, the cost remains fixed at two points per upgrade from the fifth level onward."
This revealed an important truth: investing in high-level martial arts was much more efficient than trying to break the limits of low-level ones. With the same number of improvement points, upgrading a mid-level technique brought far greater benefits.
Gu Qingfeng briefly considered using his points to break the Fiery Sun Palm's limit, but he quickly realized that doing so would require around ten points. Deciding against it for now, he turned his attention to the Heavenly Thunder Sword Technique.
Given his current level of cultivation, comprehending this new martial art was a simple task. Within half an hour, Gu Qingfeng fully grasped the essence of the Heavenly Thunder Sword Technique. New text appeared on his attribute panel:
Heavenly Thunder Sword Technique (Not yet at introductory level)
Unlike the Fiery Sun Palm, which focused on powerful strikes, the Heavenly Thunder Sword Technique was similar to the Collapsing Mountain Fist in that it had four levels: entry, minor success, major success, and perfection.
When Gu Qingfeng attempted to upgrade the sword technique, he realized it required the same energy as upgrading the Fiery Sun Palm from the fifth level onward. This confirmed that once a warrior reached the Blood Refining stage, the cost to improve mid-level martial arts remained constant.
With only a few points left, Gu Qingfeng knew he couldn't master the Heavenly Thunder Sword Technique just yet.
Over the next few days, Gu Qingfeng focused on consolidating his realm. With the help of Blood Refining Pills, he fully stabilized his new half-step Bone Refining level.
Having completed his breakthrough, a cold glint flashed in Gu Qingfeng's eyes.
"It's time to settle everything!"
Now that he was at half-step Bone Refining and armed with two limit-breaking martial arts and a perfected top-tier technique, Gu Qingfeng was confident that his strength surpassed most others at his level.
Even Luo Yu, the leader of the Iron Bone Gang and reputed to be invincible with his fists, wouldn't be a match for him now.
Gu Qingfeng summoned Gu Yang and Meng Peng to the main hall.
"Father (Patriarch)!" both men greeted him with a bow.
After the formalities, they both sensed that Gu Qingfeng was somehow different from before. Gu Yang and Meng Peng exchanged glances, and Gu Yang tentatively asked, "Father, have you made a breakthrough?"
Gu Qingfeng nodded. "Yes, I was fortunate enough to gain insights these past days, so I managed to break through."
Gu Yang was taken aback. Only then did he realize that Gu Qingfeng hadn't delayed their plans just for his own breakthrough, but to create the opportunity for them all to advance.
Meng Peng, on the other hand, was stunned by the news. He knew more about Gu Qingfeng's true strength than Gu Yang did. Gu Qingfeng had been as powerful as a Blood Refining Perfection master years ago. Now, with this breakthrough, his strength was bound to be overwhelming.
Half-step Bone Refining? Or had he reached the Bone Refining realm?
Meng Peng didn't dare speculate, but one thing was certain: the Gu family's future was secure.
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